Apple wanted AuthenTec’s “new technology” ASAP for future products

Fingerprint scanners and NFC may be in the works, according to an SEC filing.

Apple may be planning to add 2D fingerprint sensors to a future version of the iPhone, according to details revealed in a recent Securities & Exchange Commission filing. The PREM14A document (hat tip to TNW) was filed as a result of Apple's buyout of security chip firm AuthenTec, and it reveals more details about the agreement between the two companies, as well as hints about Apple's future engineering plans.

The SEC document reveals that Apple had been after biometric security company AuthenTec's unspecified "new technology" for almost a year ("late 2011") before it decided to go ahead and buy the company in July. At the time, AuthenTec had been approaching a number of consumer electronics companies—Apple included—to try to sell licenses for its unspecified technology. Apple was apparently the only company to try to move forward with an agreement—cost seemingly deterred others—but negotiations ended up falling apart in early 2012. That's when Apple began entertaining the idea of a buyout, offering AuthenTec $7 per share, for a total of $356 million.

According to the document, Apple tried to woo AuthenTec by arguing that its offer would allow the company to develop technology for just one platform instead of many.

"At the meeting, a representative of Apple noted Apple’s view that $7.00 per share represented a price that other potential buyers would be unwilling to pay," AuthenTec wrote in the SEC filing. "The representatives of Apple also stated that the Company should view the price as very attractive in light of the Company’s growth prospects, noting specifically the challenges that the Company would face in profitably developing the new technology for other large consumer electronics manufacturers, which have dozens of different smartphone platforms, in contrast to Apple’s unique narrow product platform, which allows for unity of design in component parts across significant unit volumes."

Though the filing doesn't offer exact details on why Apple wanted to buy AuthenTec, it does state that Apple obtained rights to use AuthenTec's patents and license them out to others. In particular, AuthenTec says Apple has the rights to patents relating to "hardware technology, software technology, and patents of the Company for commercialization of 2D fingerprint sensors for use in or with Apple products. "

Indeed, one of AuthenTec's most well-known technologies is the fingerprint scanner already used by a number of other companies, such as Samsung, Motorola, Nokia, HP, LG, and others. For example, one popular Android device, the Motorola Atrix, has an AuthenTec fingerprint scanner built into the back—users can swipe their fingers across it to unlock the device instead of using a PIN or passcode.

Apple may want to begin offering that in order to make its new iOS 6 feature, Passbook, more secure, in addition to beefing up overall iOS security. (And let's just say that a certain Senior Apple Editor wouldn't argue with such a thing coming to the iPhone, either—ever since seeing the fingerprint scanner on the Atrix in action, I've wanted something similar on my phone.)

But, as TNW points out, AuthenTec also makes a smart sensor to work with NFC (Near Field Communications). Apple has been rumored to be adding NFC capabilities to its next-gen iPhone and iPad since early 2011, but it has not yet appeared. Some expect it to arrive along with the so-called "iPhone 5" that may be introduced next month, though there haven't been many recent rumors to that effect. A number of Android devices are beginning to adopt NFC technology, so it's possible that Apple won't be too far behind with its own implementation.

There's a hint that, whatever the tech involved, we won't have long to wait. According to AuthenTec's account, Apple wanted to hurry the buyout deal due to its own plans. "Representatives of Apple also noted Apple’s desire to proceed quickly due to its product plans and ongoing engineering efforts," reads the SEC filing. "As a result of its focus on timing, Apple’s representatives also informed the Company that Apple would not participate in an auction process and would rescind its proposal if the board decided to solicit alternative acquisition proposals for the Company."

Jacqui Cheng
Jacqui is an Editor at Large at Ars Technica, where she has spent the last eight years writing about Apple culture, gadgets, social networking, privacy, and more. Emailjacqui@arstechnica.com//Twitter@eJacqui

39 Reader Comments

As I said earlier, they'll probably add it directly to the touchscreen.

An earlier article also mentioned in-cell digitizers which would improve the capacitive resolution of the screen to just about Retina (300dpi) levels as explained here

Quote:

In contrast, because the IPS embodiments discussed below can use the same electrodes used for display control and touch sensing, higher touch resolution can be obtained with little to no additional cost.

Fingerprint scanning also makes a great deal of sense on the iPad for multiple user accounts. Username/Passwords seem klunky on a tablet device. Though the urgency of the acquisition and caveats in case the deal falls through seems to indicate an imminent arrival, I can’t imagine something so sophisticated as multiple users not being beta tested thoroughly.

Fingerprint scanning also makes a great deal of sense on the iPad for multiple user accounts. Username/Passwords seem klunky on a tablet device. Though the urgency of the acquisition and caveats in case the deal falls through seems to indicate an imminent arrival, I can’t imagine something so sophisticated as multiple users not being beta tested thoroughly.

Agreed. Given Apple's eagerness, one would certainly believe they have been working on implementing this for quite some time now under the assumption that the technology would either be licensed or acquired.

Given Apples eagerness and deep pockets if I was in Authentec's shoes I would probably hold off on a buyout and push for licensing. Inclusion of their tech in an Apple product could drive standards in their direction resulting in a large long-term gain for them as other device manufacturers looked to match features.

Nothing like a large install base to prove your product to other potential clients.

(I know nothing about the viability of that plan for Authentec though.)

Given Apples eagerness and deep pockets if I was in Authentec's shoes I would probably hold off on a buyout and push for licensing. Inclusion of their tech in an Apple product could drive standards in their direction resulting in a large long-term gain for them as other device manufacturers looked to match features.

Nothing like a large install base to prove your product to other potential clients.

(I know nothing about the viability of that plan for Authentec though.)

That requires that other companies implement a fingerprint scanner on a broad scale, which isn't something you can expect.

In comparison, 54m Galaxy S1 and S2 phones were sold in the same timeframe as Apple selling 178m iPhones 4 and 4S.

So really, their only alternative to being bought by Apple is hoping that Samsung copies Apple and includes a fingerprint scanner powered by Authentec to increase their potential sales by 23%.

As I said earlier, they'll probably add it directly to the touchscreen.

Very insightfull OrangeCream. I predicted it too, with a much more cynical twist that got my post removed from Wired.com. Yeah, they most defintily ARE going to have fingerprint recogintion. And then the feds are going to latch onto it. Once that happens, the Feds are going to make sure everybody has a phone with the technology, even if they have to give the phones away and pay for the service. Once everybody has one, the feds will have the fingerprints of EVERYBODY.. criminal or not. That is their plan, and it IS going to happen. A federal judge just ruled that warrentless wiretaping is now legal too. So get ready everybody. It is not if, it's when.

And yes, that prediction got my post deleted from Wired.com, in which I promptly deleted my account from them.

I can’t imagine something so sophisticated as multiple users not being beta tested thoroughly.

says some companies are are already using the tech, so it must work/have been tested in the wild there.

seems really futuristic to me, hope it works well.

The problem isn't with the fingerprint scanner but adding multiple users to an OS that was never designed to have more than one user.

iOS has the same core components as OSX. I don't see why there would be a problem with multiple users.

There are all sorts of issues if you think about it. On a desktop/laptop each user has their own space. This works due to the capacity of the storage. On a tablet with limited space this quickly becomes problematic. I know many people that have a family iTunes account that use to play their music, movies and TV shows on multiple devices. Do you really want two or more copies of the same song saved to different accounts? The easy answer is just to make all media available to all accounts. What about sandboxing? What about photos? I'm fairly sure these would have to be sequestered. Don't want young Timmy seeing the unfortunate pictures taken at last nights party.

The other thing to manage is apps. Duplication is a problem here as well although not nearly as big of a space problem. Maybe duplication is fine in this case. I personally wouldn't want some of my larger apps to be on there more than once though. So one big bin of apps. Except everyone arranges things differently. Some sort of plist would need to be made so that when one user changes something another user doesn't see it. Likewise deleting an app doesn't really delete it anymore. So the OS has to scan all the plists to see if anyone else needs it and then deletes it? Another sandboxing area that would need to be tested into the ground.

The other thing is syncing. Not to iCloud but to a computer. Right now if you do sync to a desktop/laptop there is one computer that is considered the "home" device. How would that work with two people and two different computers?

These are just things I came up with in a couple of minutes. While the core components may exist in both systems, I'm skeptical about that with user management, both systems are far from the same. This is something that needs careful thought from a UI and technical perspective as well as extensive testing.

I can’t imagine something so sophisticated as multiple users not being beta tested thoroughly.

says some companies are are already using the tech, so it must work/have been tested in the wild there.

seems really futuristic to me, hope it works well.

The problem isn't with the fingerprint scanner but adding multiple users to an OS that was never designed to have more than one user.

iOS has the same core components as OSX. I don't see why there would be a problem with multiple users.

Users competing for storage space would probably be the biggest concern.

The framework to support multiple users already exists in Android, a lot of it has been discovered in Jelly bean. Apple wants to keep up, especially in the tablet space. 1 $250 tablet that the whole family can share, but keep things separate (multi-user Nexus 7) vs. multiple $500 tablets (iPad), each of which is set for a single user? No way. iPad/iPhone + iCloud + multi-user = all your stuff, any iDevice.

Pads and phones, are kind of.. personal devices. I can see multiple devices per person but not the other way around. I think they will keep it that way. Seems to work better from a profit standpoint too.

As I said earlier, they'll probably add it directly to the touchscreen.

Very insightfull OrangeCream. I predicted it too, with a much more cynical twist that got my post removed from Wired.com. Yeah, they most defintily ARE going to have fingerprint recogintion. And then the feds are going to latch onto it. Once that happens, the Feds are going to make sure everybody has a phone with the technology, even if they have to give the phones away and pay for the service. Once everybody has one, the feds will have the fingerprints of EVERYBODY.. criminal or not. That is their plan, and it IS going to happen. A federal judge just ruled that warrentless wiretaping is now legal too. So get ready everybody. It is not if, it's when.

And yes, that prediction got my post deleted from Wired.com, in which I promptly deleted my account from them.

As I said earlier, they'll probably add it directly to the touchscreen.

Very insightfull OrangeCream. I predicted it too, with a much more cynical twist that got my post removed from Wired.com. Yeah, they most defintily ARE going to have fingerprint recogintion. And then the feds are going to latch onto it. Once that happens, the Feds are going to make sure everybody has a phone with the technology, even if they have to give the phones away and pay for the service. Once everybody has one, the feds will have the fingerprints of EVERYBODY.. criminal or not. That is their plan, and it IS going to happen. A federal judge just ruled that warrentless wiretaping is now legal too. So get ready everybody. It is not if, it's when.

And yes, that prediction got my post deleted from Wired.com, in which I promptly deleted my account from them.

Er.. Who said your fingerprint info have to leave the phone? Right now when you set up a passcode/pattern to unlock a smartphone, it doesn't send that passcode/pattern to some central database controlled by the Fed-- it stays on your phone.. I'd think it would be the same for fingerprint data.

From what I think; most devices using fingerprint scanning would compare to a 2 dimensional hash of your fingerprint, not your actual print itself -- with some variance allowed in angle or pressure of swiping. As any hash value, it won't be easy to figure out what the original data would match, it just has to match the hash.

It also can't be mandatory- some people may be missing fingers/hands (war vets). It won't work if your finger had an incident with an x-acto knife, got smashed on a car door and got swollen, etc..

I don't care how cool this would be on an Apple device, I've already decided to never buy an Apple product due to the way they are behaving lately.

Funny how they're only just now implementing NFC, when some Android devices have had it for well over a year now. I don't know why the article implies they are "just" now getting NFC (pertaining to Android) when it's been quite a while since it's been implemented.

I don't care how cool this would be on an Apple device, I've already decided to never buy an Apple product due to the way they are behaving lately.

Funny how they're only just now implementing NFC, when some Android devices have had it for well over a year now. I don't know why the article implies they are "just" now getting NFC (pertaining to Android) when it's been quite a while since it's been implemented.

I'm sure it seems funny to you that LTE is finally being adopted by Apple also. There isn't much for application of NFC, the credit cards / banks have been wrangling about implementation for the last few years. Sure Japan had it 10 years ago, but everyone wants their slice for Americans to use it. Until that gets sorted out, Apple would put something in that has little to no benefit; Just like LTE with their being high power usage radio that nearly nobody could use because of coverage. But hey, sometimes its better if you don't think about it.

I don't care how cool this would be on an Apple device, I've already decided to never buy an Apple product due to the way they are behaving lately.

That's okay, you'll probably get the same features next year, and you'll probably be able to benefit from the massive NFC rollout due to the iPhone too (assuming it supports NFC next month)

Quote:

Funny how they're only just now implementing NFC, when some Android devices have had it for well over a year now. I don't know why the article implies they are "just" now getting NFC (pertaining to Android) when it's been quite a while since it's been implemented.

Apple, if they ship with NFC, will match that number in a single quarter (or about 10m a week) if sales meet expectations.

10m/week =/= "expectations" since yours bias does not qualify as analytical expectations of reality.

I realize your complete impartiality bias on AllThingsApple, but yes - Apple does copy many features. They did not invent many of them. One day, I'm sure they'll have true multitasking and you'll believe they did it first

After losing my smartphone about a year ago I've grown very cautious about accessibility (1 click amazon purchasing, bank apps, etc). My current phone has a swipe pattern unlock that I sometimes can't even get past - and I made it! Its a pain sometimes. I hope Apple implements this tech well - could be a joyous thing for me.

Apple, if they ship with NFC, will match that number in a single quarter (or about 10m a week) if sales meet expectations.

10m/week =/= "expectations" since yours bias does not qualify as analytical expectations of reality.

I realize your complete impartiality bias on AllThingsApple, but yes - Apple does copy many features. They did not invent many of them. One day, I'm sure they'll have true multitasking and you'll believe they did it first

Please, then, show us how smart you are and explain what proper sales expectations for the iPhone is?

Last year it was 37m in 14 weeks. I will admit I made a mistake in projecting 10m a week, I really meant 5m a week.

As I said earlier, they'll probably add it directly to the touchscreen.

An earlier article also mentioned in-cell digitizers which would improve the capacitive resolution of the screen to just about Retina (300dpi) levels as explained here

Quote:

In contrast, because the IPS embodiments discussed below can use the same electrodes used for display control and touch sensing, higher touch resolution can be obtained with little to no additional cost.

Apple, if they ship with NFC, will match that number in a single quarter (or about 10m a week) if sales meet expectations.

10m/week =/= "expectations" since yours bias does not qualify as analytical expectations of reality.

I realize your complete impartiality bias on AllThingsApple, but yes - Apple does copy many features. They did not invent many of them. One day, I'm sure they'll have true multitasking and you'll believe they did it first

I'm sorry, but do you actually have anything worth while to say? Seriously, junk like this just brings down the comment section. Half your post has nothing to do with the article or even anything Orange said.

Am I the only one to realize how the idea of a fingerprint scanner on a touchscreen phone is incredibly stupid as far as security goes?

Because of its glassy surfaces, your phone is covered by your fingerprints.It has been proven that making a "fake" fingerprint perfectly able to fool 99% of fingerprints scanners is trivial as soon as you've got an image of the fingerprint (generally involve a laser printer, wood glue or gelatin, it's no rocket science).And once someone has a fake fingerprint, you cannot change them, and it's game over.It take a small amount of work, but the success is guaranteed (and it's "offline", and tempering leaves no traces).

Compare that to a 4 number PIN: it's reasonably easy to remember, even with the correct 4 numbers you get by looking at the smudges on the screen the limited number of trials ensure that you'll probably not unlock it, and it can be changed regularly.

Am I the only one to realize how the idea of a fingerprint scanner on a touchscreen phone is incredibly stupid as far as security goes?

Because of its glassy surfaces, your phone is covered by your fingerprints.It has been proven that making a "fake" fingerprint perfectly able to fool 99% of fingerprints scanners is trivial as soon as you've got an image of the fingerprint (generally involve a laser printer, wood glue or gelatin, it's no rocket science).And once someone has a fake fingerprint, you cannot change them, and it's game over.It take a small amount of work, but the success is guaranteed (and it's "offline", and tempering leaves no traces).

Compare that to a 4 number PIN: it's reasonably easy to remember, even with the correct 4 numbers you get by looking at the smudges on the screen the limited number of trials ensure that you'll probably not unlock it, and it can be changed regularly.

Actually, knowing Apple, the fingerprint scan would require a "slide to unlock" motion. So it scans a moving fingerprint, smearing it in the process, though I suppose you might be able to reconstruct the fingerprint with the beginning and end of the smudge.

Actually, knowing Apple, the fingerprint scan would require a "slide to unlock" motion. So it scans a moving fingerprint, smearing it in the process, though I suppose you might be able to reconstruct the fingerprint with the beginning and end of the smudge.

Duh, of course they'll use a sliding capacitive sensor, any other type of sensor would be ginormous.That doesn't change the fact that an iPhone with a glass front and back have full, easy-to-lift fingerprints absolutely everywhere.

fingerprint-type shape, rather than the pattern of light and dark that makes up the visual impression of a fingerprint. This makes the system harder to trick.

A picture of a fingerprint isn't enough.

That's why I say you've got to use gelatin. Food-grade gelatin perfectly match the capacitive properties of a finger. It's dirt cheap, easy to find, easy to use.Do some research instead of parroting the marketing-speak.

Am I the only one to realize how the idea of a fingerprint scanner on a touchscreen phone is incredibly stupid as far as security goes?

Because of its glassy surfaces, your phone is covered by your fingerprints.It has been proven that making a "fake" fingerprint perfectly able to fool 99% of fingerprints scanners is trivial as soon as you've got an image of the fingerprint (generally involve a laser printer, wood glue or gelatin, it's no rocket science).And once someone has a fake fingerprint, you cannot change them, and it's game over.It take a small amount of work, but the success is guaranteed (and it's "offline", and tempering leaves no traces).

Compare that to a 4 number PIN: it's reasonably easy to remember, even with the correct 4 numbers you get by looking at the smudges on the screen the limited number of trials ensure that you'll probably not unlock it, and it can be changed regularly.

The cyanoacrylate fuming process for fingerprint reproduction has been around a long time, yes. But you have to have a good print to start with, and a touchscreen device isn't usually going to be a good place to get usable prints. You end up with a lot of partials (people don't usually put their entire finger on the screen, they use the tip) that wouldn't contain enough reference points to allow for good matching. Also, if the sensor was built into the screen, you're talking about an area of the glass that will be touched and swiped and generally polluted as soon as the unlock process is done. A dedicated reader is much more vulnerable to this attack, as people are taught to place the whole finger tip, hold still for a good read, etc.